Illness
by Juniper Laurel
Summary: Halfway across the middle of nowhere, Eve contracts a strange illness. Her nano-tech reacts violently to it, leaving Train and Sven with a task that might be more than they can handle. Currently in the process of rewriting, so hang with me. :(
1. Recalculating

**Rated for Train's mouth and to-be-graphic descriptions later on. And in case it's not yet evident, I don't own Black Cat.**

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><p>"Damn, why does America have to be so fucking <em>big<em>?" growled Train for the umpteenth time.

Sven ignored the ex-assassin. "I would appreciate it if you got your feet. Off. Of my dashboard." he hinted blatantly.

They were driving from the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, Georgia, USA. They were en route to Houston. "They" were Train Heartnet, Sven Vollfied, and Eve. Their target this time was the mastermind of a large-scale heist who had managed to evade capture for seventeen years.

"Are we _there_ yet?" asked Train. He bent forward without sitting up, to remove his shoes. Flexibility. Another one of his hard-earned assassin skills now being recycled. Leaning back, he wiggled his toes at a passing motorcyclist. This earned an exasperated noise from his left. "Say," he said in a more conversational tone, "Your speedometer says we're doing over eighty, and that dude just passed us as though we were standing still." He indicated the motorcyclist with his foot.

"He might be one of us," Sven pointed out.

Train nodded. "Or he might just be insane," he concluded. "How'd you get a car on this side of the Atlantic on such short notice? This Shelby's pretty sweet."

"A friend gave it to me a few years ago. I'm surprised it still works." Sven adjusted the rear view mirror. "Hey Eve, you hungry? It's almost noon."

"No," said Eve. She was curled up in a makeshift back seat, hair flying in the wind.

"Cold?" he asked.

"No," she said.

"Why didn't you ask _me_, Daddy Sven? I'm _starving_," Train whined. He affixed the older sweeper with his most pitiful kitten gaze and received the sixth Ice Age in return. Unperturbed, he folded his arms behind his head and appealed to the bright blue sky. "You're so cruuueeeel, Sven," he complained.

"Suck it up" was the harsh answer. Sven floored the gas, figuring that the road was empty enough (of police cars, at least) to take the risk. "We can take a break at the next gas station, but only long enough to refill." A guttering roar filled the before Train could reply, and the Harley-Davidson from before pulled back until it was speeding alongside Sven's Shelby Cobra.

"Hey! Look who it is!" yelled Train.

"Yo!" the motorcyclist called back. Only then did Sven realize what Train knew. Under the tinted goggles and padded headphones was none other than Jenos Hazard.

"You after Mr. Mastermind too?" Sven shouted.

"Nope!" Jenos answered cheerfully. "Rins asked me to pick her up in Houston."

"You plan to make her ride that?" Train raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, don't diss my HSC!" Jenos protested.

Train shrugged. "Just saying."

"We're getting off here!" yelled Sven. An exit to a rest station was two miles ahead and quickly approaching. As the Shelby slowed for the turn, the Harley-Davidson gunned its engine and shot off past the exit.

...

"We're only staying in this place for _one night_, you hear me? We're not rich, and this place ain't cheap." Sven lectured a distracted Eve and a disinterested Train. He stopped and watched Train fiddle with the remote until it worked. When the screen began displaying images of fire-breathing orange pterodactyls, water-squirting curly-tailed turtles, and electrically charged yellow wombats, the "gentleman" sweeper was convinced that Train was purposefully watching TV at him. In a very malicious manner as well, he noted, when the channel switched to a square-pantsed sponge and a swim trunks-wearing starfish chasing pink jellyfish with butterfly nets. "I call the shower first," he sighed.

The moment Train heard the shower turn on he turned the TV off and flopped back on one of the two single beds. He was tempted to take the opportunity while Sven was occupied to order room service, but the thought of having to work to pay back the money stopped him. Instead, he looked to see what "Princess" was doing.

Eve was flipping through a book. "It's called the Holy Bible," she said, "I found it in the drawer over there. It has many interesting stories in it."

"Cool," said Train. He observed Eve closely for a second. His instincts were touching alarm bells for an unknown reason, and he intended to find the reason. The room seemed safe by civilian standards. The blinking light by the door was a fire alarm. The ever present hum was the air conditioning. The furniture was behaving.

Then he noticed. "Hey, Princess, you don't need claws to read a book, do you?" Train asked.

Eve dropped the Bible. "Hm? That's odd," she said, looking at her hands.

"What is?" Train probed.

"I do not know why, but I have been feeling strange since we got off of that plane. In the car ride I felt a constant pressure to restrain my nanomachines. Now I am telling them to inactivate, but they are not listening."

"In other words you can't control your powers?" Train summarized. He sat up, crawled over to where Eve was kneeling, and reached for her hand. "Let me see... OW!" he snapped back as though scalded. "Eve, I don't know much about all-powerful nanotech androids in the forms of young girls, but I'm pretty sure that temperature isn't normal," he said.

"I do not know," said Eve, before her body hit the carpeted floor with a thud.

"Eve!" Train was at her side in an instant. Ignoring the cacophonous alarms now flooding his brain, he took her wrist and timed her pulse against his. Almost twice as fast. Not a good sign.

Sven approached from behind. Train had not even noticed the shower being turned off. "What happened?!" demanded the other sweeper.

"I don't know," said Train, "but she has a fever I can't even begin to estimate and her pulse is ridiculously fast."

"I take it she fell unconscious involuntarily?"

At Train's nod he pulled a cell phone from his jacket pocket and typed a string of numbers into it. "I'm calling Tearju Lunatique. She might be able to tell us what's going on."

...

["The symptoms are a high fever, fast pulse, and lack of control over her nanomachines?"]

Sven nodded as if Eve's creator and adoptive mother could see him. "Yes," he said. "So do you have an idea of what's happening to Eve?"

["...This has happened before."]

"What? What's happened before?"

["No matter. Sven, even if I explain the workings of this 'disease' to you, you would not be able to understand it."]

"Don't underestimate me," Sven said sharply into his phone.

["At the most basic level, a virus similar to those found in computers has entered Eve's body and is reprogramming her nanomachines to function on automatic. I can prepare an antivirus for you, but I'll need you to get it. Also, I must warn you this: Eve will not be completely lucid when she wakes up. If she attacks you or Train, you must fight back. She is not capable of restraining herself."]

"What are you saying?"

["You must keep Eve in containment until she has taken the antivirus."]

"Are you kidding me? She's a little girl!"

["Sven, before she is a girl, she is a deadly weapon. You cannot let yourself be misled into underestimating her power."]

Sven did not speak for a few tense moments. Then he replied. "I understand."

["You know where my laboratory is. I wish you good luck and Godspeed."] A click sounded as Dr. Lunatique ended the call.

Train's expression was as serious as Sven's for once. He had heard the entire conversation. "Forget about Mr. I Robbed a Bank. We're heading over to Lunatique's place now."

With difficulty Sven wrestled his temptation down. "No," he said, to Train's visible anger and surprise. "We're staying the night in this hotel and starting towards Tearju's lab tomorrow."

"Sven," Train began.

The older sweeper cut him off. "Tomorrow morning we get in the car and we don't stop until we're there. Train, I'm not listening to any of your ideas this time. Sleep."

Train could hear Eve's shallow breathing under Sven's snores. He sank his fingers like claws into the hotel pillow when a painfully familiar face came to mind. That's right. The last time he had felt so powerless was when Saya died. "Shit," he said.

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><p><strong>Who knows what will happen next? R&amp;R if you have comments, suggestions, questions.<strong>

**(And please don't mention that the Shelby Cobra doesn't have back seats. It's a cool car.)**


	2. Escape

**This chapter is, quite frankly, a disappointment. I am struggling to overcome a case of writer's block, and it's a tough one.**

"Water," Eve whispered. Train handed her the bottle.

The trio was on the road again. Sven drove, as he always did. Despite Train's valiant protests while they were leaving the hotel, the former Chronos Number was sitting in the back with Eve, who had taken to lying down horizontally so she could rest her head on his lap. The sun crept higher in the blazing blue sky. Sand, rock, and the occasional cactus provided little amusement in staring at from the car window. Vultures wheeled overhead.

"How is she?" asked Sven. It had to be at least the tenth time in the last hour.

"Sleeping again." Train felt Eve's forehead. "Her fever's the same, I think. It might be higher, but it's definitely not going down. How far is it to Lunatique's lab now?"

"Eight hours." The answer was terse.

"We've been on the road since five!" exclaimed Train, recalling their difficulties returning their hotel key when no one was at the register.

"And it's only noon," Sven reminded him, "There's a fast food joint around here. We can stop for a bite."

"Won't that be a waste of time?"

Sven eyed the gunman incredulously. "I've never known you to complain when offered a meal, and I've known you for three years."

"I'm worried about Princess," said Train. He returned the look through the side mirror. "And now I'm worried about you. You're not the type to prioritize eating three meals a day over burning rubber with a reason. I still remember how you nearly killed yourself training to fight Creed."

"That was a different time," was Sven 's only answer before wrenching the wheel 640 degrees to the right. The wheels skidded, leaving parallel black marks on the asphalt. He let out a curse. "Missed the exit."

...

"You sure you don't want anything, Princess?" Train called after Eve's retreating figure. The bioweapon paused next to a grinning plastic model of a clown and a miniature toy display case with a beveled yellow M on top.

"I'm not hungry," she said, "I'll wait in the car." She walked quickly so the door would not catch her hair, and Train did not follow.

Eve only leaned against the Shelby for a moment before she changed her mind. Her stomach was not hungry, but her brain was. She was suffering from the only disease that affected all known forms of intelligence in the galaxy: boredom. "I think I'll look for the library," she said to herself. Her skin was prickling.

By an incredible coincidence, nobody noticed the flash of light. Nor did anyone later mention the young gothic girl growing a huge pair of swans' wings and launching herself into the sky with a strong downward stroke.

**Sorry this chapter's so short. After rewriting I found out that I really suck at writing meaningful dialogue without forgetting about other details. Hopefully the next update will make up for it. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Attack 1: Leon

**I do not own Black Cat or any of its characters, just saying.**

Leon was bored. Ever since he and his pals took down Eden there seemed to be little excitement to brighten up his day. That is, until he saw Eve floating up above.

Grabbing his air board he shot off into the blue. "Hey, Eve!" he called.

The bioweapon swiveled in his direction, "Leon."

"What're ya' doing here of all places?"

"Library, where is it?"

Leon sighed. She was always on the hunt for a good book to read. "Library's that way, bookworm," he leaned to the left so he could point out the red brick building ten or so blocks away. He looked up. Eve was floating away, in the opposite direction. "Hey, Eve…"

He sent a light zephyr in her direction, trying to catch her attention. She seemed kind of spacey. "The book place is that way, pay attention!" no reaction.

Eve staggered in midair. Suddenly her cropped golden hair stood on end. The feathers on her wings were melting. They flattened and connected into lacy silver bat wings that looked as sharp as the edge of a dragon's scale. Her head snapped back and she cried out. Her voice screeched harshly—Leon winced—not like her usual monotone, but more like Eden's horrific crooning.

"Are you feeling al—" his inquiry was cut short as one of Eve's hands transformed into a whip without warning and she lashed out at him. The resulting wallop sent him reeling away. "Eve!" he shouted.

Her hair separated and transformed into multiple arrowhead shaped blades. With another harpy shriek she dove at him.

But halfway there she changed back.

With a small moan her eyes slid shut. She fell out of the sky.

Leon caught her before she hit the cement ground. Her momentum knocked him off the board and he fell the short distance to the ground. A blast of wind slowed the descent until there was no jarring at all.

Eve's eyes were closed, her breathing raspy. Leon held a hand to her forehead: fever.

"Oh man, Eve!"

**So now Leon knows. Things are going to get colorful. I wonder how the kid will handle things… Anyway, R&R!**


	4. Reunited

**I do not own Black Cat or any of its characters, just saying.**

"Where is she?"

"How far could princess possibly get during a fifteen minute lunch break?"

Voices echoed up the alley where Leon crouched with an arm around Eve's shoulders, propping her up off the ground. His air board lay uselessly upside down nearby. He lifted his head at the words. He recognized the voices: Train and Sven.

"Hey, guys, over here!" he called out.

Footsteps stomped closer. They had found them. Leon let Train gently pick up an unconscious Eve.

"She's sick, isn't she?" he demanded.

"Yeah, how'd ya' guess?"

"She attacked me."

Sven inhaled sharply. "It's begun."

"What?"

Train nodded, all of a sudden serious, "how will we keep her from escaping again?"

"Don't know, any ideas?"

Leon leapt up. "I'm here, you know. Will someone please explain what's going on?" He hated those who ignored him in such a belittling manner.

The beans were spilled.

"Oh. My. God." He sat down. "So she would have killed me without a second thought?"

"You got it, pretty much," Train confirmed.

Leon shook his head.

"Kids, she's waking up," Sven warned. Eve was stirring.

A new voice then made an entrance: "What's wrong?"

All heads but one turned in its direction.

At the mouth of the alleyway stood Number 10, Lin Xiao Li.


	5. Attack 2: Lin Xiao Li

**Sorry about the delay. Writer's block can kill the imagination. Anywho, I don't own Black Cat or any of its characters. Here's Chapter 5.**

"What's wrong?" he repeated, walking over. His eyes fell on the comatose girl. "Is something wrong with Eve?" He reached his hand out toward her.

Eve's eyes snapped open. Wide.

And wild.

In a split second, faster than the startled Chronos Number's could react, a biologically manifested blade had opened up a deep gash down Lin Xiao's right arm. He jerked back with a choked back cry of pain. Spilled blood was already pooling on the ground, dark red on dull grey.

A quivering shriek tore out of Eve's throat. Her shoulder blades reshaped themselves and those demonic wings sprung open again, throwing Leon against the wall hard. He struggled halfway upright and locked pleading eyes with the Black Cat. "Don't… let her… Get away," he choked out.

With a gusty flap she lurched into the air. Train jumped to his feet.

Glancing at him Sven muttered, "We'll be fine. Bring her back safe."

"Will do," Train sprinted for the mouth of the alley, Hades flashing in his hand.

A soft thud was heard as Lin Xiao Li crumpled to the ground.

**R&R if you like.**


	6. After her!

**Whew, I can write again. Yeah! Chapter Six everyone!**

"Hey, kid," Sven mumbled, nudging the ponytailed Number. "Man, I wonder if Train can hold his own with that Eve."

"Yeah," Leon grunted in pain. He hitched himself over slowly to sit next to the patch-eyed man. Sven looked him over too.

"I'm okay. She barely touched me."

"You hit the wall pretty hard."

"I softened the impact with what airspace I could put between it and I. Just bruised my ribs a little."

"Can you keep an eye on Lin Xiao here? Make sure he doesn't bleed to death? I want to go make sure Train hasn't bitten off more than he can chew this time."

"Sure, old man."

Sven ran off, leaving Eve's first two victims alone.

With an arm gingerly around his mid-torso, Leon leaned against the wall. His ribcage protested with a wave of numbing pain each time he drew a breath. He stared blearily at Lin Xiao lying face down in a spreading pool of blood.

"She whipped us good this time, didn't she?" he ventured. His purple eyes followed the path Eve had taken through the air.

With final glance at the passed out Number X, Leon grabbed his air board and took off.

**Uh oh… I need help. R&R to help me decide whether the next Chapter should be focused on Train vs. Eve or What happens to Lin Xiao.**


	7. Strong

**I'm back! Sorry I took so long to update...**

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><p>As members of the Chronos Numbers, they were trained to be strong. They were the noble soldiers of Death. They would rid the world of evils unspoken of. But that didn't mean their lives were worthless. After all, they were but human.<p>

It was a few moments before he bled to death that he woke up.

"Sh-should h-ve known," he coughed. A diluted few specks of blood hit the pavement in front of him. Lin Xiao drew himself halfway up and stopped. Taking out Seiren, and removing his bloodied jacket with a grimace, he lashed the weapon and the jacket fell in pieces. Working fast and ignoring the burning pain, he tied the strips of cloth together and bandaged his arm as best as he could.

With the bleeding staunched, strength returned rapidly to his limbs. A smile touched his lips. _I wonder how far Leon got…that look on his face…he was hurt much worse than I was._ But knowing the kid, he wouldn't show it until he was a death's door or worse. _I shouldn't move around, but…_ The shadows were lengthening across the alleyway. Soon he would be seeing by streetlamps and moonlight.

"Train," said Number X, under his breath, "be careful."

Bending down, he dipped a fingertip in the crusting pool of blood. Quickly he left three red dots in a straight line near the mouth of the alley. Train would get the message. _I'm going after Leon._

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><p><strong>Well, next chapter should be longer (and bloodier). It's battle time! Haha, R&amp;R.<strong>


	8. The Scent of Blood

**This one's from Eve's point of view. She is a_ bit_ delirious.**

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><p>Eve panted, feeling sweat blow off her forehead and into the wind in streams. Her new form took as much energy to maintain as a total body transformation, but there was no helping it. She was surrounded by enemies. Train and Leon had betrayed her, held her back. <em>Sven…<em>tears coursed down her cheeks, but she clawed them away furiously. They were all enemies. No one was to be trusted.

Another spasm shook her frame. Her wings faltered. _No._ She couldn't maintain this shape. Her nanomachines needed time to recharge, or a crash was inevitable. The wings tilted her downward. She must find somewhere to hide.

"Eve!" _NO! _It was Train. He'd found her. Terror iced her bones, paralyzed her. The world spun around her, reaching out, reaching in, swallowing her whole. _Train, you are evil. You are death. You are the smell of blood._ He must die.

Her head smashed against a tree, exploding stars across her vision. Her throat burned, choking out a watery cry.

A hand touched her shoulder. She was kneeling on the ground. "Eve, princess, are you alright?" _The nerve._ Train stood over her. His face was contorted, his eyes over wide, and fangs glittering over a bloodied, forked tongue. Antifreeze thawed her muscles in a flash.

"NO!" she screeched, spreading bladed wings again. Burning adrenaline like coal, she charged the enemy. Cold flames reached up from him and scorched her. Agony emanated hotly through her, again and again. She was blind. "No!" A sword-like arm slashed down at Train's chest.

"Eve!" he whipped out Hades to parry the blow. He was going to shoot her! He was going to shoot hr like he shot all those other criminals. No, she wouldn't die this easily. Never, never would she give in that easily. Her wings whirred, dicing the air before it had time to move. Shooting up, turning sharply, hovering, aiming, and she swooped down on the bloodthirsty danger waiting below. The edges of her blades sharpened themselves to the nano-molecular level. His pistol would stand no chance. She screamed. And hit the earth, slashing, tearing.

Hands came from nowhere. They grabbed at her. Wings, shoulders, arms, knees, until she found herself unable to move. _What's happening? I should have ended him!_

"Eve! Eve! Eve!" chanted a thousand voices. She rolled and tried to fight free, but the hands and voices would not let go. _Is it over? Have I lost?_

"No, NEVER! Let! Me! GO!" she roared. Pushing her nanomachines to extreme lengths, her flesh flashed steely silver and sprouted blades everywhere. Quite suddenly, the hands vanished.

She smelled blood. So much more than the other times, even when Lin Xiao tried to attack her. It dripped over her, cascaded to the ground and sucked at her. The gagging scent of iron stuck in her throat. Her eyes opened and saw red. Red all over the trees, all over the ground, all over her body, painting the sky the color of blood.

"Sven," croaked Eve. Her body tingled and burned, all blades sinking back into normal skin. Her dress was shredded and clung to her sweaty, bloody frame in threads.

The darkness closed in, and she sank to the earth.

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><p><strong>More reviews=more chapters. :P<strong>


	9. Finding Eve

**I don't know what it feels like to read this chapter, but while writing it I got that "going down the final plot arc" type of feeling. Like running the "homestretch" almost. Probably just me.**

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><p>Eve.<p>

You once said that you don't have to kill someone to beat them.

That was after you beat me.

Do you still believe that?

Leon darted as fast as the wind would carry him, burning his power but not caring. He had to find Eve. Then he looked down. And stopped. And lowered himself for a breather and a greeting with an old ally.

"Hey, I know you," he said to the adult.

"Yes, and I think I know you. You're that one who…" Jenos Hazard paused.

Leon hovered, waiting for him to finish with "is much more powerful than we thought" or "saved Creed and Train's life".

"…doesn't like to be called a midget," finished Jenos.

The boy was tempted to slice the branch hanging above the adult's head off and laugh, but he changed his mind. The Number noticed this. "Something on your mind, midget?"

On a second thought, and air blade flashed and a tree limb fell toward the adult. Filthy adults, thought Leon, they're all the same. "Nope," he lied, "Why would you ever say that?"

"I told him," said another voice, a more feminine and mature voice than either of the two males. Doctor Lunatique stepped into view, accompanied by Rinslet.

Leon started to feel outnumbered, even thought the adults were not showing any hints of violent intention. "Eve?" he asked.

"I've got an antivirus here," said the doctor, lifting a small silver case halfway out of her pocket. "If we can get it to her in time she may stop going on homicidal rampages."

"That would sound so funny if you weren't serious," Leon couldn't help saying.

"I don't think I've ever said thanks to you for siding with us during that Apostles of the Star battle," Rinslet thought out loud suddenly. Her face breaking into a smile that made the boy wonder when the last time she had an alcoholic beverage, she walked up to him and patted him on the back. "You're growing up."

"No. Thanks." Leon put a hand to the base of his ribcage. He wondered how badly he was hurt, as the pain seeped back in slow waves, each leaving him slightly light-headed.

"Something wrong, squirt?" Jenos asked.

"Nothing," Leon brushed it off. "Damn, I shouldn't have stopped to chat. We have to find Eve!" He bent down to pick up the airboard and nearly cried out in pain. Maybe something's broken, he thought. "How are you going to get there?" he questioned the adults.

"My style," Rinslet winked. Jenos explained that she brought a bunch of bikes and the doctor commented on how the structure was so simple that the rocket boosters nearly doubled the original weight, and Rinslet turned on them with accusations of stealing her spotlight.

Leon left the adults arguing, leaping into the air. As he soared above the treetops he chuckled at his own feat: with his old sleight of hand he'd snatched the antivirus right out of the doctor's pocket. Now he just had to find Eve before she killed someone else.

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><p><strong>The humor was probably not needed. Oh well.<strong>


	10. All vs One

**For a person who writes such ridiculously short chapters, I wonder why I don't update more often. Quick recap: I own nothing. Got it? Ok. Onward!**

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><p>Train spotted her before Sven did, but the older sweeper was a few paces ahead of him in terms of distance, a few paces that were easily reduced to naught when Train sped up. "Shhh," he hissed, pointing ahead through the trees, "Look. It's definitely Princess there."<p>

Together they trampled down the short space between themselves and the bioweapon, kneeling down beside the supposedly comatose girl. "Thank God," the eye-patch-wearing man remarked, "She's still breathing."

"Um, Sven," the stray cat said slowly, "Is it me, or is her hair still moving?"

"What?"

"I said," he began to repeat," Is it just me, or is-gah!" Lightning quick, he whipped out Hades, catching most of the first fist-of-hair blow's force on the gun's second-generation barrel. The second blow he dodged with the time bought from the first deflect, but the third got him square in the chest, flinging the former assassin outward and backward with enough force to keep the "kitty" from landing on his feet. He lay ominously still for a moment before giving a moan and running a finger across his lower ribcage gingerly. "She owes me ten bottles of milk when this is all over."

"Sven, look out!" cried a woman's voice. Rinslet stood at the side of the clearing, Jenos close behind. The former had a pistol aimed and ready, but her hesitation showed clearly that she would only shoot in an absolute situation. Eve was still that little girl who fought alongside the sweeper alliance and Chronos against Creed, so long ago.

Sven, eye-patch discarded, saw the danger.

He saw the blade in a series of images flashing past, nanosecond shots. Time taunted him, slowing down enough so that he could see every detail of his impending death, yet not allowing him to move. After all, Eve's blades could move so fast that a single second would fail to slip by before drifting aside, neatly sliced in half. Her eyes were closed. Without conscious effort, the nanomachines drove themselves toward what they perceived as a threat that required eradication.

"Sven!" Train called out, though he was powerless to lend a hand. Black Cat the former Chronos assassin had his limits as a human being.

In the span of half a second two miracles occurred, as the sweeper pair would later recall. Eve's sword-turned-arm slowed, sunlight refracting around the outlines of innumerable fine threads restraining it, and in the quarter second remaining before the orihalcon wires, already straining, would give, a pair of strong arms appeared hooking the green-haired man off his feet and out of danger.

A pair of blue eyes peered down at Sven, meeting said sweeper's stunned gaze. "Are you alright? Sven-san," the magician asked.

"I could ask the same thing," the response was, "Lin Xiao Li."

Number X's interest waned. "Yeah, you're alright," he supplied his own answer. Leaving Sven to recover on his own, Lin Xiao spun around and bolted. The earth erupted in a shower of dust and grit where Eve's blade had missed. Everyone winced in unison at the release of yet another metallic scream. Familiar wings sprouted from the bioweapon, letting it flap its way airborne.

Meanwhile Leon was toying around with the vial of antivirus, or whatever it was the doctor had dubbed it, pondering just how he was going to get close enough to the crazed bioweapon to deliver the cure. Of course it had to be an injection, not a spray of some sort that he could manipulate with his Tao. Made it all the more convenient when the client is an uncooperative raging murder machine. He took a deep breath and almost gagged. The back of his throat tasted like iron. Not a good sign by any means, but as a symptom it could still be ignored. I'm going to give "easier said than done" a whole new definition, he thought, planting his feet on top of his now badly dented board. A rush of hot air and he took off. "Help of any kind would be greatly appreciated," he shouted.

"Lin! Jenos! Gimme a lift," Train snapped. Instantly the same thought struck the partnered Chronos Numbers. Lin Xiao unfurled his Seiren, twisting the orihalcon cloth into a ropelike whip that he lashed around Jeno's wires. Black Cat jumped up, landed neatly on the tightrope-trampoline hybrid, and was launched into the air.

He locked his arms around Eve's shoulders, using his body to hold the girl's razor-sharp wings against her back. "Now, Leon!" he ordered.

The kid swooped up from below, jabbed the needle randomly into Eve's arm, and pressed the plunger, hovering to make the job easier. The effect was visible right away. All of the nano-weaponry melted back into smooth flesh and torn black dress. Leon spread his powers out, creating a reverse vortex as he had on the day Creed had been defeated for good, stopping Train and a still-unconscious Eve before they succumbed to gravity's will. Smoothly the trio lowered themselves back onto the earth.

And when the air finally stilled it was Leon who moved first, the empty vial dropping to the ground as he fell forward into Train's arms.

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><p><strong>Oops. I didn't mean for any character deaths. This was a kind of "impulse" chapter, so I'm sincerely sorry for any mistakes I failed to catch and correct. Next chapter will <em>most likely<em> be the last. I do hope reading this wasn't a total waste of your time.**


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